The $14 Billion Fumble
Even in the era of a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) led by Lina Khan, antitrust law can be a pretty hum-drum affair, consumed with minutiae about relevant markets, market shares, the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), unilateral effects, coordinated effects, and possible efficiencies. Things get just a bit more interesting when there are allegations of a conspiracy to restrict output and raise prices.
Then, there are the once-in-a-lifetime cases that turn knobs all the way up to 11. And that’s the recent National Football League (NFL) “Sunday Ticket” litigation. Plaintiffs were a class of DirecTV “NFL Sunday Ticket” subscribers who claimed NFL teams colluded with broadcasters to suppress the availability of out-of-market NFL game telecasts, driving up the price paid for Sunday Ticket. After a three-week trial, the jury came back with an eye-popping $4.7 billion award against the NFL that could have been trebled to more than $14 billion.